Theodore glanced at Bella. Leaving her alone wasn’t ideal, but this was a lead he couldn’t ignore. After all this time, he finally had the chance to unravel the mystery of his accident, to find the perpetrator and bring them to justice.
"Alright," he finally muttered. He ended the call and turned to Bella, his eyes filled with apology. His hesitation wasn’t lost on her.
"Is there a problem at work?" she asked softly.
Theodore admitted with a nod, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I’ll be back soon, I promise."
Bella offered him a gentle smile. "Go," she said with understanding. "Don’t worry about me. Bridget will be here soon to keep me company."
"Call me if anything changes, okay?" Theodore leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before heading out of the waiting area.
Bella watched him go, loneliness washing over her. Taking another bite of the sandwich, she forced out a sigh, willing to calm down.
Bella finished eating and went to the bathroom. Little did she know, someone was following her closely. As Bella entered the restroom hallway, the figure stepped forward, revealing himself in a chilling moment of recognition.
Bella’s jaw fell apart. Her eyes widened in disbelief, locking onto the tall figure before her. "You!" she exclaimed.
Lionel, Bella’s despised stepfather, stood before her, a cruel smirk twisting his features.
Bella’s blood froze in her veins. Dread coiled in her gut, mingling with a flicker of fury. She had known this moment would come, ever since news reached her of his release from prison, but she had not anticipated they would meet so soon.
"How did you find me?" she hissed.
Lionel’s smirk widened into a sneer. "Finding you is not a big deal for me. Your dear Mrs. Green, however, wasn’t quite as cooperative. She tried to hide your whereabouts dearly. I asked her politely, but she didn’t respect me. She left me no choice but to be harsh on her. And see, here I am."
Panic clawed at Bella’s throat. "What did you do to her?" she snarled, her fists clenching so tightly her nails dug into her palms.
"Nothing..." Lionel shrugged, his devil-may-care attitude infuriating. "I just burned down her house."
Her breath caught in her throat. The simmering fury inside her flared into a raging fire. "You monster!" Bella grabbed his collar. "How could you do that?"
Lionel, surprised by the sudden attack, stumbled back. His eyes, however, quickly hardened, a dangerous glint flickering within them. He shoved her hands away.
"Easy there, little firecracker," he sneered. "Don’t forget who you’re talking to."
"You cruel, despicable man!" Bella spat, trembling with fury.
"Cruel?" Lionel scoffed, a cold amusement twisting his lips. "I was merely exercising my rights. Your dear Mrs. Green wouldn’t let me enter my own house."
"That house isn’t yours," Bella hissed, her voice dropping to a dangerous low. "It belongs to my mother."
Lionel’s lips curled into a devilish smirk. "Oh, baby girl, your mother is my wife. And wives don’t get to deny their husbands entry to their own homes, do they?"
"She won’t be your wife for much longer," Bella retorted, her voice laced with a steely resolve. "She will be divorcing you soon."
"It’s not you to decide. Selena loves me. She will never leave me."
"Humph!" Bella snorted. "Love? You don’t deserve an ounce of her love. You are a leech, Lionel, a parasite. Get out of here, and don’t you dare show your face again."
Lionel’s eyes narrowed, a flicker of anger replacing his amusement. He held Bella’s gaze for a moment, the silence thick with unspoken threats.
"Alright, alright," he said, raising his hands in mock surrender. "But before you shoo me away like a pesky fly, how about you give me some money?"
Disgust welled up within Bella, a bitter tide threatening to spill over. "Mamma just had a surgery. And you are here to ask for money. Do you have some shame?" She scowled at him.
"I raised you, gave you my oh-so-valuable name," Lionel grunted out, scrunching up his nose. "As my daughter, you have to fulfill my demands."
Bella couldn’t believe how unreasonable this man could be. "Raised me?" she scoffed, tears stinging her eyes. "You never considered me your daughter, not for a single moment. I and Mamma were just money-making machines to you. I don’t have any money to give you."
"No money?" He laughed. "But your mother has just had a successful surgery in this fancy hospital, an organ transplant no less! You spent millions on her, and you said you didn’t have money!"
His gaze roved over her. "Look at you," he sneered. "An expensive dress, a designer handbag..." His eyes gleamed with avarice as they landed on the diamond ring adorning her finger. "And that ring!" He lunged forward, grabbing her hand to get a closer look.
Bella recoiled, a jolt of revulsion shooting through her. She yanked her hand free, her face contorted in a mask of fury.
Lionel’s smirk faltered slightly, but he quickly regained his composure. "You have money, Bella. Don’t play games with me."
"Whatever money I have is for my mother’s treatment," Bella said firmly. "You won’t get a cent from me."
Lionel’s eyes narrowed, his expression hardening. "You are living a life of luxury, aren’t you?" He stepped in closer and asked in a hushed tone. "I saw the man with you. Who is he? Your sugar daddy, perhaps?"
Bella’s nostrils flared, the air burning in her lungs. Rage, a simmering inferno, threatened to boil over. Every mocking word was a fresh assault, churning her stomach with a potent mix of disgust and fury.
"Get lost, Lionel," she hissed. "I don’t want you to be here."
She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing about Theodore, of using their relationship as another weapon against her.
Lionel’s smile faltered, replaced by a hardening glint in his eyes. You sent me to jail and never came to see me. You didn’t care about what I was going through in there. I thought you were just angry about what I did to your mother. But it turned out that you were having a good life here."
He took a menacing step closer, looming over her. "Won’t you compensate me?"
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